Man jailed after trying to drive drunk from Calgary to Edmonton

A man who killed his friend in a drunken attempt to drive from Calgary to Edmonton has been jailed for two years.

Abdirahman Said Ahmed, 23, had pleaded guilty to impaired driving causing the death of his friend Ahmed Farah in the crash near Didsbury on Oct. 1, 2011.

Court of Queen’s Bench Justice Suzanne Bensler said the driver’s “significant level of intoxication — blood-alcohol level of .218, more than double the legal limit” were among the aggravating factors.

She said the crash was very traumatic for Raymond McGinnis and Donna McGinnis, the couple in the vehicle struck when Ahmed’s car crossed the median into their path. The pair were physically unharmed, but had to experience the grisly scene.

Bensler said Ahmed also gave a false name to police at the scene, and again at the hospital after the crash.

Crown prosecutor Britta Kristensen noted Ahmed was on bail for drug charges he jointly faced with Farah and was ordered by the court to not have any contact with him. Farah was the principle in the drug case and charges against Ahmed were dropped after Farah’s death.

Ahmed, Farah and another friend had been asked to leave Jimmy’s Nightclub in Calgary about 2:30 a.m., Bensler said. Staff offered to call a cab for them, but Ahmed refused, said the prosecutor, who sought a three-year prison sentence and four-year driving prohibition.

“Our court of appeal has repeatedly said deterrence and denunciation are the keys to sentencing, because of the unfortunate prevalence and continued prevalence of drinking and driving on our highways,” said Kristensen.

Defence lawyer Matthew Millman, who argued for a two-year sentence, said the incident has had a significant impact on his client’s life and was “a wake-up call”.

Ahmed told court what happened that night was a “horrible mistake”.

“I can’t take my actions back what I did that night but I can try to make changes in society so nobody else does it,” he said from the prisoner’s box.

Ahmed was also ordered to provide a DNA sample and was banned from driving for four years. He was also prohibited from owning or possessing firearms for 10 years.

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